A legal matter in Türkiye does not pause because you live in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary or Vancouver. An inheritance opens after a parent dies in İzmir. A Turkish buyer stops paying a Canadian supplier. A divorce granted in Ontario still appears as a marriage in the Turkish civil registry. A clinic in Istanbul leaves a patient with a complication that only shows up back home. Each of these has to be dealt with in Türkiye, under Turkish law, usually before a Turkish court, enforcement office or land registry.
This page brings together what a person or company in Canada needs to know before starting: how the work is done at a distance, which Canadian documents travel to Türkiye and how, and where each type of matter is decided. Six separate guides cover the law of each matter in detail; they are linked in the sections below.
Who this page is for
Readers in Canada with a Turkish matter usually fall into three groups, and their starting points differ.
Canadian citizens with no Turkish background. They meet Turkish law through a transaction or an event: an apartment bought on the coast, medical treatment, a contract with a Turkish company, a relative’s estate. They need the work in English and a clear account of which Canadian documents Türkiye will accept.
Turkish-Canadian dual citizens. Their marital status and family records are kept in the Turkish civil registry (nüfus), and events abroad such as a divorce or a birth do not update that registry by themselves. They can sign documents at a Turkish consulate in Canada and often have family property in Türkiye.
Canadian companies. Exporters, distributors and service providers with Turkish customers, agents or joint venture partners. Their matters are commercial: unpaid invoices, the enforcement of a judgment or an arbitral award, a contract dispute.
Arabic-speaking residents of Canada with family or property in Türkiye belong to all three groups. Correspondence with Lex Lata runs in English or Turkish, and Arabic correspondence is answered with an interpreter where needed.
Working on a Turkish matter from Canada
Most matters can be run from start to finish without a trip to Türkiye. Three things make that possible: a power of attorney, a small set of properly certified Canadian documents, and written reporting.
The power of attorney: Turkish consulate, or Canadian notary plus apostille
A Turkish lawyer acts for you under a power of attorney (vekâletname). There are two ways to sign one in Canada.
The first is a Turkish mission. Türkiye has an Embassy in Ottawa and Consulates General in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Under Article 191 of the Notaries Law (No. 1512), notarial work abroad is carried out by consuls, so a power of attorney drawn up at a Turkish consulate is a Turkish notarial act, written in Turkish. The Apostille Convention does not apply to documents executed by diplomatic or consular agents, so no apostille is added. Turkish and dual citizens most often use this route.
The second is a Canadian notary followed by an apostille. The Apostille Convention has been in force for Canada since 11 January 2024 and for Türkiye since 29 September 1985. A Canadian public document, including a notarised power of attorney, now needs only an apostille from the competent Canadian authority to be used in Türkiye, without consular legalisation. Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan issue apostilles for documents from their own province. Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa issues them for federal documents and for documents issued or notarised in the other provinces and in the territories.
What the power of attorney says matters as much as how it is signed. Under Article 74 of the Code of Civil Procedure (HMK, Law No. 6100), a lawyer who has not been expressly authorised cannot settle, waive the claim or an appeal, accept the other side’s claim, enter into an arbitration agreement, apply to alternative dispute resolution such as mediation, or appoint another lawyer. Nor can the lawyer bring or pursue actions about rights that are strictly personal to the client unless the power of attorney states which ones. The power of attorney and apostille guide explains the wording and the documents to prepare at the same time.
Translation, including French documents from Quebec
Turkish courts and registries work in Turkish. A Canadian judgment filed for enforcement must be accompanied by a certified translation, and so must the document showing that the judgment has become final (MÖHUK, Law No. 5718, Article 53(1)(a) and (b)). Death certificates, marriage and divorce records, company documents and invoices are handled the same way.
Documents from Quebec are often in French. They can be translated directly from French into Turkish; there is no need to produce an English version first. In practice the translation is made in Türkiye by a sworn translator and certified by a notary. The apostille is added in Canada before translation, so that the translation covers the apostille too.
Court papers between Canada and Türkiye
Both states are parties to the Hague Service Convention of 1965, in force for Türkiye since 28 April 1972 and for Canada since 1 May 1989. It governs how judicial documents from one state are formally served on a person in the other. Proper service matters later as well: a Turkish court asked to enforce a Canadian judgment refuses enforcement if the defendant was not duly summoned or represented under the law of the place where the judgment was given and raises that objection in Türkiye (MÖHUK Article 54(1)(ç)).
Time zones, language and UYAP
Türkiye is on UTC+3 all year. Istanbul is seven hours ahead of Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal in the Canadian summer and eight hours ahead in winter; Vancouver is ten and eleven hours behind Istanbul. Turkish hearings take place during the Turkish working day, which is night or early morning in Canada. That is one reason the work runs in writing.
Turkish courts work through the National Judiciary Informatics System (UYAP). Under Article 445 of the Code of Civil Procedure, actions can be filed, court fees and advances paid and case files examined electronically with a secure electronic signature. The lawyer files and follows the case through UYAP and sends you the documents and a written note in English after each step.
Six matters, six guides
These are matters that people and companies in Canada commonly have in Türkiye. Each has its own guide with the statutory detail; the summaries below show where each one starts.
Powers of attorney and apostilles
Almost every file begins here. Choosing between the consulate and the notary route, listing the special powers required by HMK Article 74 and preparing the apostille and translation in the right order avoids having to repeat the process later. Read the guide to powers of attorney and apostilles from Canada.
Enforcing a Canadian court judgment
A Canadian judgment does not take effect in Türkiye on its own. A civil judgment that is final under the law of the state where it was given can be executed in Türkiye only after a Turkish court grants an enforcement decision, tenfiz (MÖHUK Article 50(1)). The application goes to the civil court of first instance (asliye mahkemesi) of the defendant’s domicile in Türkiye, failing that of the place where the defendant resides, and failing both to a court in Ankara, Istanbul or İzmir (Article 51). The court checks reciprocity, jurisdiction, public policy and the defendant’s right to be heard (Article 54). There is no general treaty between Türkiye and Canada on the recognition and enforcement of court judgments, so reciprocity has to be shown through a statutory rule or an actual practice in that state that allows Turkish judgments to be enforced (Article 54(1)(a)). Child support can be different: decisions from Manitoba and Ontario (since 1 February 2024) and British Columbia (since 1 March 2024), where Canada applies the 2007 Hague Child Support Convention, can fall under that Convention, which MÖHUK Article 1(2) reserves. Recognition of foreign judgments in Canada is governed by each province and territory, which is why the evidence usually concerns the province whose court gave the judgment. Once enforcement is granted, the judgment is executed like a Turkish judgment (Article 57(1)). See enforcing a Canadian court judgment in Türkiye.
Recognition of a Canadian divorce
A divorce granted in Canada does not change the Turkish civil registry by itself: carrying out an administrative act in Türkiye on the basis of a foreign decision requires the recognition procedure (MÖHUK Article 58(3)). Article 27/A of the Civil Registry Services Law (No. 5490) offers an administrative route. A final foreign divorce is registered if both spouses apply together, in person or through representatives, or if the Turkish spouse applies alone where the other spouse has died or is a foreigner; the decision must come from an authority competent under the law of the state that gave it and must not be manifestly contrary to Turkish public policy. Abroad, the registration is made by the Turkish mission in the country where the decision was given, which for a Canadian divorce means the Turkish missions in Canada; in Türkiye, by the civil registry offices designated by the Ministry. If registration is refused, recognition is sought before a Turkish court under MÖHUK (Article 27/A(3)). Recognition does not require reciprocity (MÖHUK Article 58(1)), and Law No. 4787 (Article 4) gives family courts the recognition and enforcement of foreign family-law judgments. Where neither spouse is Turkish but the Canadian divorce has to be relied on before a Turkish authority, for example in an inheritance or land registry file, its effect as res judicata or conclusive evidence depends on a court finding that it meets the conditions for enforcement (MÖHUK Article 58(1)). See recognition of a Canadian divorce in Türkiye.
Inheriting property in Türkiye
Succession is governed by the deceased’s national law, but Turkish law applies to immovable property in Türkiye (MÖHUK Article 20(1)). A Canadian citizen’s apartment in Antalya therefore passes under Turkish succession rules, even if the rest of the estate is administered in Canada. Heirs prove their status with a certificate of inheritance (mirasçılık belgesi, often called veraset ilamı), which a civil court of peace or a notary issues on application (Turkish Civil Code, Article 598(1)). A Canadian probate document issued by a court cannot simply be presented at the land registry: the recognition procedure applies to non-contentious foreign decisions and to administrative acts based on them (MÖHUK Article 58(2) and (3)). Where co-heirs cannot agree on what to do with the property, the action to end co-ownership (ortaklığın giderilmesi) is heard by the civil court of peace (HMK Article 4(1)(b)). See inheriting property in Türkiye as a Canadian heir.
Harm after medical treatment in Türkiye
Canadians travel to Türkiye for dental work, hair transplants, cosmetic surgery and eye surgery. When a complication appears after returning home, the first questions are which clinic and which doctor were involved, what was agreed and what the medical records show. Claims against a private clinic or doctor are civil claims before the Turkish courts. Claims arising from treatment at a state hospital are brought against the administration as a full remedy action in the administrative courts (Administrative Procedure Law No. 2577, Article 2(1)(b)). Time limits apply. Against a private clinic or doctor, a claim in tort becomes time-barred (zamanaşımına uğrar) two years after the injured person learns of the damage and of the person liable, and in any case ten years after the act; a longer period applies where the act is a crime for which criminal law sets a longer limitation period (Turkish Code of Obligations, Article 72(1)). Claims based on the treatment contract follow separate limitation rules. Against a state hospital, a person whose rights are infringed by an administrative action (idari eylem) must, before suing, apply to the administration within one year of learning of the action and in any case within five years of it (Administrative Procedure Law, Article 13(1)). See Canadian patients harmed after treatment in Türkiye.
Unpaid invoices from Turkish buyers
A Canadian exporter owed money by a Turkish buyer has two main routes. The first is enforcement proceedings without a judgment (ilamsız takip). The enforcement office issues a payment order warning the buyer to pay within seven days and to raise any objection in the same period (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law No. 2004, Article 60), and an objection made in time stops the proceedings (Article 66(1)). The second is a court action before the commercial court (asliye ticaret mahkemesi), which, unless otherwise provided, hears all commercial cases (Turkish Commercial Code, Article 5(1)). For commercial claims for a sum of money, including the action to set aside the debtor’s objection (itirazın iptali), applying to a mediator before filing is a condition of the action (Article 5/A(1)). A foreign claimant, including one that starts enforcement proceedings, must provide the security the court sets for costs and the other side’s possible loss, and the court exempts the claimant on the basis of reciprocity (MÖHUK Article 48). If the contract has an arbitration clause and the award is made in Canada, enforcement in Türkiye runs under the New York Convention of 1958, to which both states are parties; Türkiye applies it to awards made in another contracting state and to commercial relationships. See Canadian exporters recovering unpaid invoices from Turkish buyers.
Where each matter is decided
| Matter | Where it is decided in Türkiye | What you usually need from Canada | Series guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power of attorney | Used before courts, enforcement offices and land registries | Signature at a Turkish mission, or before a Canadian notary with an apostille | Power of attorney |
| Canadian judgment | Civil court of first instance (asliye mahkemesi) | Certified judgment, proof that it is final, apostilles, Turkish translations | Judgment enforcement |
| Canadian divorce | Turkish mission in Canada or designated registry office in Türkiye (registration); family court (recognition) | Final divorce decision, proof of finality, apostille, Turkish translation | Divorce recognition |
| Inheritance of property | Civil court of peace or notary, then the land registry | Death certificate, records of family ties, apostilles, Turkish translations | Inheritance |
| Medical treatment | Civil courts (private clinic) or administrative courts (state hospital) | Treatment records from Türkiye and Canada, invoices, messages with the clinic | Medical claims |
| Unpaid invoices | Enforcement office; mediation, then the commercial court | Contract, invoices, delivery papers, correspondence, apostilled company documents | Debt recovery |
What Lex Lata does and does not do
Lex Lata is a law office in Istanbul. For clients in Canada it reviews the facts and documents, advises on Turkish law in writing, prepares the text of the power of attorney, files and follows court cases and enforcement proceedings in Türkiye, attends hearings and reports each step in English.
It does not advise on Canadian law. Questions such as how a Canadian court would treat a Turkish judgment, Canadian tax on an inheritance or the effect of a divorce under provincial family law belong to a lawyer qualified in the province concerned. Where a matter needs both, the two lawyers can work on the same file with the client’s agreement. Lex Lata does not issue apostilles or translations: apostilles come from the Canadian authorities listed above, and translations from sworn translators. It does not predict the outcome of a case or how long a court will take.
Every matter begins with a written review. You describe what happened and send what you have, and Lex Lata tells you in writing whether and how it can take the matter on. Scope and fees are then set out in a written engagement letter before any work starts.
Starting from Canada
Send a short written account: what happened, where in Türkiye, which documents you hold and what you want to achieve. Copies are enough at this stage. Originals with apostilles are needed later, once it is clear which documents the Turkish court or office will ask for. If a Turkish court paper, payment order or land registry notice has reached you, include the date it was served, because Turkish time limits often run from service.
You can write in English or Turkish; Arabic correspondence is answered with an interpreter where needed. Use the contact page to send your message. This page is the hub of the Canada series; the six guides above go into the law of each matter.
